Step 1: Explain patiently to professional carpenter husband over several months that current compost bins are old and too small and in the wrong place. Paint dazzling word pictures of abundant food and rich soil that would result from beautiful new compost bins.
Step 2: Research. Turns out it’s not easy to find a good set of plans! Most of the compost bin instructions out there are for recycled pallet bins or a couple of other common designs that were dismissed by said husband as either too ugly, too expensive to build on our budget, or lacking in lateral or other significant supports. We did end up finding these useful plans from the City of Vancouver, and this became our base idea. I figured that if these plans would keep Vancouver compost dry in the winter monsoons and safe from raccoons and other city critters, they were good enough for us.
Step 3: Take stock of existing supplies and recycle as much as possible. Can you believe the fr#@%!*g price of wood these days?! Skipper recycled our previous deck stairs and some cedar posts that he rescued from a job site a year or so ago. He salvaged as much of the old bin’s cedar as he could. We bought a small amount of pressure-treated wood for the base, a small amount of cedar for the front pieces, some hardware cloth to rodent-proof the bins, and a small number of assorted screws and other bits and bobs, and we’re still into this for almost $300. Hence the large number of online plans for recycled pallet compost bins!
Step 4: When the good weather arrives—start building!
Before:
Old 2-bin system falling apart. Note loose plywood top--hinges are rusted out and old lid is long gone...
Preparing the new site perpendicular to the old one. New footprint: 10' x 4'.
The frame of recycled cedar posts stacked on concrete pavers to keep the wood off the ground.
We decided to raise the bins off the ground for both rodent-proofing and to make shoveling a little easier on the back.
Coming together: more salvaged and recycled cedar. Former deck stairs create the base. We could have parked our deck chairs right there, it's so sturdy!
Hardware cloth on; first bin complete!
Complete! New metal roof, and compost curing in its new home.
The details…
Each of the front (removable) panels has 2 screws in place at the bottom and has holes drilled in it for air circulation
The metal roof on its cedar frame. Light for me to lift!
The finished product!
Source : http://backyardfeast.wordpress.com/2011/02/15/how-to-build-the-ultimate-compost-bin/
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